It's Been So Long
by Der Blaue Wolf
Summary: It's been a long time since Satoshi went into his coma, now he's woken up, and nobody is happier than Shion. But this is Higurashi, and things never go as planned. SatoShion. COMPLETED
1. Waking Up

A/N: this is my new fic, on Higurashi. It is set 5 years after the events of Kai. (Note: in the anime, it never mentions ages, so I'm just gonna take a good guess.)

_Disclaimer: _I wish I did own Higurashi, but I don't.

It's Been So Long: Waking Up

_Can you believe in this?_

Shion sat by the hospital bed, listening to the repeating 'beep, beep' from the machines surrounding the bed. Soon, those machines would be switched off, or so everyone hoped, because today...

'Today, they're going to bring back Satoshi.'

Dr Irie had completed his cure, and the first person to receive it was the boy lying on the bed in front of Shion. The bonds holding his hands and feet had been removed. Soon, he was due to wake up. And when he had woken up, Shion knew that everything would be alright, everyone would be happy she was sure, and all the trauma she had undergone would disappear from her mind. It had been six years since his disappearance, and five since she found out the truth. Every weekend, she had visited him, read him books, told him about how everything was going, about how Satoko was growing up into a beautiful young woman, about Mion and Keichi's engagement, about anything that came to mind. Shion loved just being near him, she would give anything for him, she had already given a fingernail for him in the past, she would give her whole hand if need be.

Shion looked to the heart monitor, it looked the same as ever, the same pattern was appearing. 'Soon, he'll be off that machine, soon, he'll be back with us.' Then the bleeps suddenly started to get more frequent, and Shion realised what was happening. She turned to Satoshi again, and saw the boy's face had contorted slightly, then she saw the thing that she had waited six years for. Correction: things, his two eyes both wide open. Shion did not remember exactly what happened next. However, what she was sure of was that she ended up hugging a still slightly dazed Satoshi.

"Mi-mion? What's going on."

"It's Shion, and I'll explain later. I'm just so happy that you're back."

"Shion?"

"Yes, remember? I'm Mion's twin."

It all came back to Satoshi, the way Mion had been acting strangely, when she suddenly lashed out at Satoko that lunch time, when she gave him his alibi and revealed who it really was who had done all that. He had only known her as Shion for a day before... Then he realised where he was, why he was there, and what Shion meant by 'back'.

He looked down at Shion, "H-how long has it been?"

"Six years since you came here, I found out a year later."

"And, did anyone tell Satoko?"

"No, Dr. Irie thought it was best that she didn't know, she's still waiting for her Nii-Nii to come home."

Satoshi felt a pang of guilt, he hadn't been there for six years, what state was Satoko going to be in now? What would his uncle have done to her?

Shion noticed his pained look, and quickly answered his fears, "Your uncle left soon after your disappearance, he ended up being arrested for murdering some woman, and Satoko moved in with Rika, so she's fine." Shion smiled at him, "I've done my best to look after her as well, she's like a little sister to me, she even calls e Nee-Nee sometimes."

Satoshi was relieved, everything had gone better than he could have hoped for, and now he could enjoy his life with everyone again. "It's a good thing you didn't tell Satoko, she would have worried so much."

He wrapped his arms tightly round Shion, and he realised something else. Throughout his sleep, he had heard things, voices, especially one in particular, Shion's voice. He patted her head, and whispered in her ear "Thank you Shion, for everything."

Shion smiled, and slowly fell asleep in his arms. Satoshi sat holding her tightly in his arms for a while, until he noticed someone looking through the glass viewing panel. It was Dr. Irie, watching the touching scene. The doctor walked into the room. "Well Satoshi, you're finally up."

"Yes, and now I can get on with my life," Satoshi replied in a hushed voice, trying not to wake Shion.

"Well before you go I'll need to run a few tests, just to make sure you're alright, and that the disease doesn't come back."

"What disease?"

Irie looked surprised, then remembered "Of course, nobody ever explained exactly what was going on."

So Irie explained everything to Satoshi, about the Syndrome,about the clinic, Takano's betrayal, and what had happened since. 'Tokyo' had realised the importance of finding a cure to the disease when many of their men had fallen ill with it after they had been to Hinamizawa. As a result, the clinic had remained operational, and had kept its funding.

After everything had been explained, Satoshi looked blankly at the doctor, amazed by what had happened during his absence. "Then, doctor, does that mean that everyone else here in the village..."

"Has the disease, yes, including that girl that you're holding onto so tightly." Satoshi blushed a little and Irie laughed. "Don't worry, I'm sure everyone would be overjoyed if you two got together, especially Satoko, then Shion would really be her sister."

Satoshi's colour deepened, "Who said we were going to..."

Irie laughed again, "Well if Shion heard you say that then she'd cry, do you realise how much you meant to her, she's come here every weekend to read to you, to tell you what's happening in the village. When I told her I'd found a cure she was ecstatic, and couldn't wait for you to wake up and pat her on the head again."

Satoshi looked down at the sleeping girl, she was beautiful, there was no doubt about it, and she had that innate patience and sweetness that her sister lacked, she was a wonderful girl, and if she really did love him, he should count himself lucky. He looked back to the doctor, "When do you want to do these tests?"

"Whenever you're ready, but sooner rather than later, but please don't wake her on my account," Irie stood up, "I'll leave you two alone for now, when she wakes up, Shion will show you up to my office."

Satoshi nodded and the doctor left. He looked down again at the figure in his arms. He wondered to himself exactly what he did feel for her, but that could wait for the moment, for now he just needed to hug her close to him. He looked to a clock on the wall, it read 12:20, about lunch time. He then realised something, he was hungry, as in _really _hungry. He hadn't eaten in six years, and now he was famished. He looked down at Shion again, and the voice in his head telling him to get food died away. He could wait to eat, but he did not want to wake Shion. 'I'll wait, she's waited five years for me to wake up, I'm sure I can wait an hour or so for her."

-------

_40 minutes later._

The girl in Satoshi's arms began to stir a little. Satoshi had himself half fallen asleep, and was quite surprised when she started to wriggle. Shion lifted her head up and looked into Satoshi's eyes. He smiled, and she smiled back.

"Shall we go?" Satoshi asked.

"Yeah."

Shion led the boy up to the doctor's office. Then left to sit in the waiting room while Irie carried out the tests. She was happy, that was about the only way to describe her current state of mind. She had waited for six years to see Satoshi alive and well, and now her wish had been granted. She thought about everything that she wanted to do now that he'd woken up. She sat there daydreaming for a good half an hour before Satoshi came into the waiting room and walked up to her. She smiled up at him, "Ready to go?"

"Yeah, but where to?"

"I dunno, you hungry?"

Satoshi remembered just how famished he was. He nodded. "In that case, how about the Angel Mort?" Shion asked him.

"Sure."

"Oh there's just one thing I've gotta do, gimme a minute and I'll be back," Shion said, and she walked into Irie's office. The doctor looked up on her entrance, as she said "Um... Manager, can I use your telephone?"

"Yes of course, feel free."

Shion lifted the receiver and dialed a number, she put the phone to her ear and waited, then after a few seconds, _"Hello, Furude shrine house."_

"Rika."

_"Oh, Shion, hi, nice to hear from you."_

"Um... Rika, could I talk to Satoko, I need a word with her, and I'm in a hurry."

_"Of courseone second."_

Shion waited, until a second girl spoke down the telephone,_ "Hi, Nee-Nee, how are you?"_

"I'm fine thanks, I need to discuss something with you, so would you come out to lunch with me?"

_"Sure, the Angel Mort as normal?"_

"Yeah, well I'm setting off now, I'll meet you there."

_"Okay, I'll see you then, bye."_

"Bye," Shion put down the receiver, and left the room, while Irie put together the half of the conversation he had heard. His only regret about the current situation was that he would not be there to see Satoko's smile.

Shion entered the waiting room and walked over to Satoshi, "Time to go," she said.

They walked outside, and up to a car. It was black, and new enough that Satoshi could not tell what make it was. Shion opened the car and got in the driver's seat, while Satoshi got in on the passenger's side. 'Of course, she's 21 now, old enough to drive, the things I've missed while I was asleep."

Shion started the car, and they drove down the semi-familiar roads towards their destination.

-------

Satoko had just reached the restaurant, she had noticed Shion's car parked outside and went straight in. As she entered she caught sight of Shion's green hair, and she noticed someone next to her. Satoko blinked, stunned by what she thought she saw. 'That blond hair, it couldn't be...' She walked towards the table, and she turned to see a smiling Shion and...

"Nii-Nii." Satoko forgot her womanly ways, she forgot that she was 17, and ought to act it, she jumped straight at her brother, who caught her and hugged her.

"Nii-Nii."

"Satoko, I'm back, and I'm not going away again."

"Nii-Nii."

Shion watched the two siblings and smiled, she was happy for them. Then suddenly Satoko grabbed Shion and pulled her into the hug too. "Thanks Nee-Nee, for finding Nii-Nii."

Shion laughed, "With all these 'Nii's And 'Nee's this could get confusing."

The three just smiled at each other for a while, until Satoko broke the silence, saying to Shion "Well now that Nii-Nii's back, I guess you can really become my Nee-Nee soon." The blushes from the the two young adults were enough to trigger Satoko's trademark laugh. She normally controlled it in public, but she was too happy at the time to care.

Shion thought about what Satoko had just said. Of their close friends, only Mion knew exactly how she felt about Satoshi, or at least she was the only one Shion had admitted it to, back at her distinction. Shion wondered if her feelings were that obvious.

Satoshi was still wondering about his exact feelings for Shion, but decided that now was not the time for such ponderings. He should enjoy these first days back with his sister, and then he could wonder about everything else. He deserved it, after all it had been so long since he'd had the chance.

-----

A/N: That's all for the moment, this story will probably come in less frequent, but longer chapters than my previous ones. Please review to tell me what you think.

Bis Bald

BW

Corections made, as of 17/02/10


	2. How time Flies

A/N: I would like to apologise in advance in case of any delays with further chapters, as it all depends a lot on how much work I happen to have.

Note: rating changed to 'M' because even if it's not in this chapter, there will be lemons later.

It's Been So Long, Ch2: How Time Flies

_Can you believe in this?_

The three youths left the restaurant, all with smiles on their faces. Satoshi then realised something, and frowned. Shion noticed this, "What is it Satoshi-kun?"

He looked at her and answered "Well, the thing is, I don't have anywhere to stay, so... what should I do?"

Shion thought for a minute as they got into her car, "Satoko, is there room at your place?"

"Well what with Rika and Hanyu, not really," Satoko replied.

"There's always your old family house," Shion suggested, but from the look on Satoshi's face, wished she hadn't. Of course, that place held bad memories for him, he would not want to go back there. "Well, there's a spare room in my flat, if you'd like to stay there, it's over in the next town, but that's only a mile or so." Shion hoped that he would accept, she really wanted to spend as much time with him as possible now that he was awake.

Satoshi smiled, "If you don't mind Shion, that would be lovely, although I don't actually have anything like clothes."

"Why not?" Satoko's question took them both by surprise, but of course, she had no idea where Satoshi had been for the past six years.

"Um... I lost everything a while ago."

"Oh, well I have all your old stuff at home, so if we stop off there then you can pick it up, before you go of to spend your night all alone with Nee-Nee." The two adults' blushes were reward enough for Satoko, who laughed her head off all the way to her house.

As they pulled up at the bottom of the stairs up to the house, Shion was getting to the point of madness, "Satoko can you please stop laughing, it's geating a little on my nerves."

"It's just your immaturity when it comes to matters of romance."

"You can hardly talk," said Satoshi. The girls shared a glance, "What?" he asked.

"Well actually," Satoko began, "I'm engaged."

Satoshi was, to say the least, surprised. To be gone six years, and then find out that your sister is engaged to be married is certainly startling. Satoshi handled it as calmly as can be expected: "**WHAT THE FUCK, WHO TO EXACTLY?**"

Satoko gulped as answered, in a very small voice, "Dr. Irie."

Now Satoshi's state of mind was beyond surprised, and he had moved on to astonishment: "**WHAT, THAT PEDOPHILIC PERVERT ASKED YOU TO MARRY HIM, AND YOU SAID YES? I THOUGHT YOU HAD BETTER TASTE!**"

"_SLAP"_

Satoshi's cheek stung. Satoko glared at him, "Do **NOT **talk about him like that. My dear Kyosuke loves me, and I love him. He's not a pedophile, he just loved me in spite of my age, not because of it."

Satoshi looked a little hurt, "Sorry, it's just, I wasn't expecting it. How long has it been?"

"Three months, but nobody apart from us and Rika knows about it yet, so please keep it that way," Shion answered.

"So you knew but didn't tell me?" Satoshi asked accusingly.

Shion stammered, "Satoko wanted to tell everyone herself, so I didn't mention it, sorry..."

"No, don't apologise, I was being unreasonable." He sighed, "How time flies when you aren't around, but I am now, I need to get back into the swing of things. I'm sorry to both of you, I'm just not adjusted to everything yet." Satoshi looked out the window and sighed. Shion put her hand on his and he turned to face her again. She smiled at him, and he smiled back.

"Satoshi, I know everything will be hard for you to get used to, but everyone is here to help you out until you are used to it, okay?" He nodded in reply. "Good, so now we just need to get your things, then when we get back to mine, you can ask me any questions that you want about what's been happening around here, or anything else that comes to mind."

Satoshi smiled even more, his face was only a few inches from Shion's, and it seemed like such a small gap...

"Are you two gonna sit there staring at each other all day or are we going to get moving?" Satoko had to spoil the moment.

Reluctantly, the two broke off from staring at each other and got out. Satoko ran up the steps quickly, leaving the others to their own devices. Shion turned to Satoshi, "Shall we?"

Satoshi walked up and took her hand, "Let's go." Shion was blushing profusely, and Satoshi liked it, and he had realised why. As he led Shion up the stairs, he thanked fate that he had chosen to stay at Shion's flat that night. 'This should be... interesting.'

-----

Satoshi sighed with relief as Shion pulled into the parking lot of her apartment building. He was exhausted. True he had been asleep for six years before, but all that had done was throw his system out of sync. It would take time to get used to timings of everything again, but he was sure he would manage. False, if he did not manage then Shion would make him manage. He clambered out, and went to the boot of the car to take out his stuff. He had only taken what he needed and a couple of other little things. He did not want to impose on Shion more than he had to.

He pulled out the old suitcase and shut the boot, the walked to where Shion stood. With his free hand, he took hers and then he smiled at her. She smiled back again, it was getting repetitive, at this rate both of them would have permanent smiles, that could not come down as the muscles would set.

The two of them walked into the building, then up a few flights of stairs. When they reached the fifth floor, Shion led Satoshi to the only door on that floor, apart from the stairs. Satoshi was amazed, on the other floors there had been three or four doors each, but it seemed that Shion had the entire floor to herself. They went in, and Satoshi was again surprised, surprise was becoming a habit for him. The hall they walked into had about ten doors coming off it: she may as well have her own house.

Shion noticed his astonishment and chuckled. "When Grandma passed away, she left me a small fortune, so I can happily live by myself just on the interest, I still do work part time, but only so that if I ever start a family I have plenty of money."

Satoshi turned to her, raising an eyebrow, she giggled and turned away, walking down the hall. She stopped by one of the doors and opened it. "Here's your room," she said.

Satoshi followed her and went in. The room was about three times the size of his old room, with a desk and a huge double bed. He turned to her, both eyebrows lost in his fringe somewhere. She laughed at his expression. "Is something wrong, is it not big enough?"

"N-no, it's fine, briliant even, but when you say 'small fortune'..."

"I mean, 'enough money for me to buy my _own _village."

Satoshi's face fell a little, realising now that there was a problem in his way. Shion noticed the odd face he was pulling, "What's wrong."

"It's just, you're so rich, I'm nothing compared to you, yet you still let me stay with you... I just don't understand."

"We're friends, and I wouldn't be a very good friend if I didn't put you up for a while."

Satoshi looked her in the eye. They both knew that there was another reason for Shion's actions, but Shion didn't know that Satoshi knew. Satoshi dropped the suitcase and walked up to her, then suddenly wrapped his arms around her. She was startled to begin with, but hugged him back. "Shion." She looked up at the young man. "Shion, thank you so much, for all that you've done to help me, and for looking after Satoko, and for coming to see me all the time when I was unconscious, and I've realised something." Shion held her breath, 'could this be it?' she wondered. "Shion, although I've only really know you for two days, I can't help, but be in love with you."

Those words were music to Shion's ears. "Satoshi, I.m in love with you too." She leaned in, and he did the same, and their lips touched. To start with, they just held each other, with their lips softly touching, but then their mouths started moving, and Satoshi slid his tongue into Shion's mouth. They kissed passionately. When they broke off for air, Shion smiled at him, "You know, I think this room is too small, you'd better come and share with me..."

Satoshi needed no encouragement.

-----

Sunlight was streaming through the blinds of Shion's bedroom. Satoshi stirred at last after a very comfortable sleep. He felt Shion's body pressed up against him and smiled at the memory of last night. They had not had sex, just a furious make-out session before collapsing next to each other, but it was still the most enjoyable thing Satoshi had ever done. He looked at the girl who lay next to him, in only bra and panties, and thought only one thing: 'She's so beautiful, but unlike her sister, she's also cute and sincere, and I love her for it. She is as perfect as possible.'

Said girl started to stir a little as well and she opened her turquoise eyes, raising her head, to look into Satoshi's dark orbs. "So it wasn't all a dream."

Satoshi laughed a little, "No, I am awake, I am in bed with you and I do love you."

Shion lay her head back down by Satoshi's, "Good, because if that had been a dream, I would not have wanted to wake up until you did."

Satoshi chuckled and kissed her. "Well my lovely, do you think we should get up now, or do you want another few kisses?"

"Do you need to ask?"

Satoshi went to it.

-----

Chapter two, done and dusted. I do not know when I will post the next chapter, probably next week-end at the earliest.

Bis Bald

BW


	3. Shopping for Tears

A/N: I'm getting through this story pretty quickly actually, here's chapter 3.

It's Been so Long, Ch3: Shopping for Tears

_Can you believe in this?_

Satoshi turned off the shower and stepped out, reaching for his towel and starting to dry himself. Six years without washing was not something he ever wanted to try again. As he dried himself off he wondered about where his life was going to take him from here. After only knowing her properly for two days of being conscious of it, he had already declared love to Shion. He did love her, but he was still a little worried. 'Are we going too fast, but she's been waiting six years for this, and I... well I am allowed to have hormones aren't I?' He pulled on his old clothes, still very pensive.

It was a bit of a surprise that his clothes still fit him, but although he had grown a little taller, he had not changed so much that it mattered, although the clothes did hang rather loosely on his now thin frame. He had lost a fair amount of weight over those years, giving him a slightly starved look. 'Which reminds me,' Satoshi thought as he stepped out of the bathroom and a delicious smell caught his attention, 'Shion's cooking breakfast.'

-----

For the last half hour, Shion had been madly trying to find something decent to eat. When she finally found some eggs and bacon and had put them on to cook, the phone rang. She went over to pick it up. "Hello."

"Sis, it Mion."

"Hi Mi-chan, how are you and Keiichi getting on."

"Fine, fine, but is it true?"

"Is what true?"

"That Dr. Irie found a cure and Satoshi's awake, and currently staying at your flat."

"Who told you that?"

"Rika phoned me to tell me the news, so it is true?"

Shion smiled. Mion was the only person she had told about Satoshi's condition, and of course Mion, knowing her sister's feeling towards the young man, would now be waiting for the wedding invitations. "Yes, it's true, and no we aren't engaged... yet. Although things got rather interesting last night, and I must say, Satoshi is a very good kisser."

"Oh, my, GOD. That was fast! He'd been up for what, eight hours? And you've already pounced on him."

"If there was any pouncing, then let me assure you, I did not initiate it. But the main point holds true."

"So did you, you know?"

Shion was glad that her sister couldn't see her blush. "NO WE DIDN'T!"

"We didn't what?" came a voice from behind her. Shion gulped and turned to see Satoshi smirking at her. He continued, "If you'd like to then maybe a bit later, we only just got up."

"Shion, are you there?" Mion yelled into the phone.

"Uh... yeah, sorry, I've gotta finish breakfast, so I'll see you later."

"Okay, bye."

Shion put down the phone, and hurredly walked to the cooker to sort out the food. Satoshi watched her, noticing the blush she was desperately trying to hide. As she finished serving, he asked, "Who was that on the phone?"

Shion looked up at him, with a little of the blush left in place. "Sis."

"Awww, you look so cute when you blush, be careful, unless you want Rena taking you home." This caused Shion to blush even more. Satoshi sighed, "And I thought you'd want to spend your time with me not Rena."

"Hey, I do want to spend time with you, but you keep making me blush, I can't help it."

Satoshi sat down, "Well then, after breakfast we can spend some more quality time together." Shion sat down with a wide smile on her face, and the two tucked in.

-----

After a quick make-out session on the sofa, the couple were at a bit of a loss as to what to do. "We could go shopping, you need some new stuff Satoshi-kun."

"What kind of stuff?" Satoshi asked, worriedly.

"Oh, this and that, I'm sure that not all your clothes fit you any more."

"You just want an excuse to go shopping and have a guy to carry everything for you."

Shion smiled, "Is there anything wrong with that?"

-----

"How much are you planning to buy exactly?"

"Oh, not much more."

"You said that a hour ago.

"Ah, did I?"

"Yes," Satoshi answered firmly, while staggering after Shion with a few dozen bags in his hands, one of which contained a few new sets of clothes for him, the rest... well you can imagine.

"Oh well this time I mean it."

"Really? Because if we end up in one more shoe shop I might just scream!"

"What about a clothes shop?"

Satoshi's face gave her a definite 'Don't even go there if you value your make-out sessions with me.' How Satoshi could pull a face like that was beyond Shion, but she just smiled at him, "Well I suppose that that's enough for today, let's go home."

'Home,' Satoshi thought, 'amazing how I can call it that after only one night, but they say home is where the heart is.'

He watched the green haired girl as she walked a little ahead of him. He was so entranced by her that he did not notice someone calling his name, until said person tapped him on the shoulder, "Satoshi, it's been so long, it has!"

Satoshi turned to see Rena smiling at him, she was wearing a sailor suit as always, only this one was bigger, and had more room for her ample_ gifts_. As he looked her up and down, he noted that she had turned into quite the beauty since Satoshi had last seen her, with her hair longer than before. Along with the way she still repeated parts of her sentances, the effect made Satoshi wonder why Rena had not tried to take herself home ever.

"Rena, yeah, it's been a while."

"I heard from Rika that you'd come back, it's good to see you."

"Yeah, look, I've gotta dash, I'm carrying for Shion," he indicated the bags, "and I don't want to make her wait."

"Okay then, I'll see you later."

"Bye." With that, Satoshi turned to follow Shion again. She was standing by the corner of the street, and did not look happy. Satoshi looked questioningly at her, "What's wrong?"

"Oh nothing, nothing at all."

"That's a lie and you know it."

"Look can we talk later, we need to get home."

Satoshi agreed, knowing that she would tell him in her own time.

-----

As Satoshi dumped the last of the bags in Shion's room, his mind was still on her odd actions earlier. As soon as they had arrived back at her flat, she had gone to the bathroom and locked the door. He went up to the bathroom door, and heard sobbing, "Shion, are you okay in there?"

"Uh, yeah, fine," she half sobbed back.

"Shion, if something's wrong then it's better if you tell me, I don't like it when people cry."

He heard a click and Shion opened the door, her eyes were puffed up and red. "Satoshi, I...I..."

Satoshi put his arms around her, holding her tightly, she flung her arms around him and cried into his shoulder. Satoshi lifted her up and carried her through into the bedroom and laid them both on the bed. Shion was still crying, and Satoshi could do nothing but kiss the tearful girl. Her tears finally stopped, and she looked up at him. "I'm so horrible," she chocked, "I see Satoshi-kun talking to another girl, one of his old friends, and I immediately think the worst, even after Satoshi's told me he loves me."

She looked ready to cry again, so Satoshi pulled her closer, and kissed her again. "Shion, it's natural, you've waited six years for me, and now you want to make sure that you keep me now that you have me."

"Satoshi, you aren't mad at me?"

"How could I be mad at such a kind, wonderful and beautiful girl? You are the only girl I want, and I hope that I'm the only one for you."

"Of course you are." Shion lay her head down, it was only about one o'clock, but after her emotional outburst, she needed to rest. She closed her eyes, and her breathing slowed.

Satoshi held her close to him. "Sweet dreams baby, and when you wake up, I'll make your whole life sweet," he whispered to her.

He then lay himself fully down next to her, then realised his shirt was soaked, he looked at the girl who had made it so, and decided that it could wait, at the moment, anything could wait for Shion. Now he knew what would make her truly happy, and he intended to do everything in his power to make her happy.

He moved closer and closed his eyes, soon the couple were both blissfully asleep in each other's embrace, and each other's love.

-----

A/N: please review, 'nuff said.

Bis Bald

BW


	4. Sonozaki Inquisition

A/N: Okay, can someone **_PLEASE_** review, even if you don't like it, so that I know. If you don't then I might just give up on this story.

It's Been So Long, Ch4 Sonozaki Inquisition

Shion was still asleep, and Satoshi just lay next to her with one arm wrapped round her. Her overreaction to him talking to Rena had scared him a little, so he was not going to leave her alone for too long, especially not while she was sleeping. If she woke up without him, he was afraid she might just flip. 'I need to get Irie to check her out at some point, I hope it's not the syndrome affecting her.'

He lay there for quite a while, listening to her soft breathing, and gazing round her room. It was huge, but full or clutter, so it looked barely any bigger than his old room. 'She doesn't seem like the kind of person to be disorganised, and the rest of the flat is in perfect order, so why all this mess?' The mess was made up of the strangest things: from books on psychology to old furniture. 'Wait, books on psychology?'

Satoshi gently moved his arm out from under Shion and went to examine one of the books. It looked almost unused, until he reached one of the reference pages at the back, underlined in pencil on that page was 'Symptom:Suicidal Tendencies.' Satoshi looked back to Shion, 'No, not her, surely?'

That was something else to talk to Irie about.

-----

It was two days later that Satoshi got his chance to talk to the doctor, he had a check-up, to make sure that he fully returned to health. He had left Shion in the waiting room, and went into the doctor's office.

"Well Satoshi, you seem to be back to normal, so I believe that's it, I'm sure you want to get back to Shion."

"Actually Manager, there was something I wanted to ask you about her."

Irie raised an eyebrow, "What is it?"

"Well..." Satoshi explained what he had seen, her odd behaviour, and the book.

Irie looked perturbed, "As regards her overreaction, that could well be about stage two of the syndrome, and I'll book an appointment with her sometime, but the suicide is... different, it wasn't her that tried to kill herself."

Satoshi sighed with relief, the doctor's next words made him feel even worse, "It wasn't Shion, it was Satoko."

"Wh-WHAT?"

"After your disappearance, as she grew older, she became very depressed, to the extent that she tried to hang herself. She survived, and we were able to reduce her depression, but Shion's been worried about it ever since, keeping an even closer eye on her, it's no wonder that she had books on the subject. I wouldn't worry too much about Satoko, she should be fine now that you're back, and if you worry too much then it will in turn worry Shion, which could cause her syndrome to develop more."

"Okay, but why didn't anyone tell me?"

"She's fine now, I promise you, and we didn't think telling you would do you any good."

"Is there anything else you aren't telling me?"

"Well, there is what we did to reduce her depression."

"What was that?"

"Well remember that bear you bought her? We sent it to her from 'you' for her 14th birthday."

Satoshi was stunned, he had somehow completely forgotten about the bear. "Manager, you did too much, you and Shion, I owe you both so much."

"Well then, it sounds like you aren't going to object to Satoko and me getting married."

"Don't push your luck," Satoshi said, getting up, feeling a little better than when he had gone in.

-----

It was some time later that Satoshi found himself in bed with Shion again. They still hadn't gone any further than kissing, mainly because they Shion's family would not like it if they found out that things had gone any further, and the couple were still not even engaged.

'That's a point,' Satoshi thought, as he lay on the bed with Shion curled up next to him, 'How long until I ask her? Will I even be able to, or will I have to apply to the Sonozaki elders, just like Keiichi? I need to talk to Mion about this.'

He looked down at the green haired girl... 'No, woman' he corrected himself. She was asleep by this point, and looked, he thought, as beautiful as ever. 'If I had to fight an army to get her, I would, and the Sonozaki elders aren't _much _scarier.'

-----

"So, Satoshi, what did you wanna talk about that meant you had to send my fiance out of the room?" Mion asked Satoshi, as she sipped her tea.

"I need your advice, it's about Shion." The aforementioned girl had a shift at Angel Mort that afternoon, so Satoshi had taken the chance to talk to Mion.

"Oh really? And what is it about my sister that makes you not want anyone else to be within earshot?"

"Well, the thing is, I want to ask her..." Satoshi's voice trailed off.

"I see, you want to ask her to marry you, and are afraid of my family's reaction, so you came to me to ask me what I thought best to do, am I right?"

Satoshi sighed, "When did you learn to read minds Mion? You're absolutely right."

"Of course, I was just waiting for the news of it. Now about my family, there is something I think you should know. Before she passed away, my Grandmother said that if you and Shion got together, that she thought it would be wonderful, and that she thought it could finally end this feud over the dam war."

Satoshi stared at her, wondering if it was April Fool's day, 'It's after 12 anyway, can she really mean?'

Mion laughed at the bemused face Satoshi was pulling, "That said, asking the elders couldn't hurt, I'll try to arrange something for you."

"Thank you, Mion, you're a good friend."

"Hey, this is mostly for Sis actually, although I have to say, she chose pretty damn well."

-----

"So, Satoshi Hojo, we have heard what you request," one of the many faces spoke, they all looked the same to Satoshi, except for Mion's in the centre. "You wish to marry Shion, yet you have nothing to give her, how do you expect to keep her?"

'With all the money she has, why are they asking me that?' He wondered, but thought of the best answer he could, "I have some money, left to me by my family, and I am willing to work as hard as I need to in order to look after her."

Another one of the many faces spoke, "Why do you wish marry her though? There must be some reason."

"What I do, I do for love, that is all," Satoshi answered briefly, hoping that they would approve.

The faces turned to one another, each talking to one of the other faces. Satoshi scanned the room, trying to work out their impression of him. Mion caught his eye and she smiled at him, mouthing "Not bad."

The faces stopped talking to each other, and one said, "Have you asked Shion yet about this?"

"Not yet," some frowns, "I wanted to make sure that we could before asking her, I understand that she has had a great deal of stress in her life, and I did not wish to add to it, so I wanted a definite answer from here before asking her."

"Do you think you have a reasonable chance of getting her to accept then?"

"If I didn't, I would not have come here to waste others' time, I say I have a better chance than most by some way, but it is her decision, I cannot read minds."

The faces talked amongst themselves again, 'Help' was all that was running through Satoshi's mind.

After a while, the voices died down. Mion spoke, "Have any of you any further questions?" A general shaking of heads followed, "In that case, Satoshi Hojo, please leave for us to discuss our decision."

Satoshi stood and left, hoping that he had made a favourable impression.

He sat and waited. After about half an hour, Mion came out of the room, she smiled at him, "The family says, if Shion agrees, then you're free to marry."

Satoshi jumped for joy, "Thank you Mion."

"Don't thank me, they quite took to you."

"Well regardless, I can't wait to ask Shion," he was overjoyed, unsurprisingly.

-----

A/N please review, please.

Bis Bald

BW


	5. CatFights and Nightmares

A/N: although not made very clear, this starts on the same day as the last chapter.

It's Been so Long, Ch5 Cat-fights and Nightmares

_Can you believe in this?_

Shion was finishing up her shift at Angel Mort, as she walked into the changing room to get out of the rather reveling uniform, she let her thoughts slip back to Satoshi. They were always doing that, she could barely go five minutes without thinking about him. She knew it was getting a little over the top, but she could not help it. She loved Satoshi with all her heart, and she would not let anyone let her take him away from her. She thought about what had happened when Rena had talked to him in town. 'She clearly likes him, just because she couldn't have Keiichi, she's going after Satoshi, well she can't, he's mine.' She chuckled to herself, 'Yes, and if she tries anything again, then God save her... because nobody else will stand a chance.'

She finished dressing and walked outside to her car, she had to pick Satoshi up, as he had been to visit Mion again. It was not surprising that he should want to spend time with one of his oldest friends, but Shion was almost suspicious, except of course, Mion was already engaged, and Keiichi would not let her have an open relationship.

Shion frowned, 'Why am I thinking like that? Satoshi wouldn't do anything behind my back, would he? He said that he loves me, I am sure that he wouldn't do anything to hurt our relationship. But... I still feel scared that something bad is going to happen.'

She drove on, towards the Sonozaki mansion, still deep in thought. 'I trust Satoshi, but what if some of the others try to disuade his affections? What if...'

She arrived, and got out of the car. She walked slowly up to the front door and knocked. It creaked open.

"Hey sis."

"Hey Mion, how are you?"

"Okay thanks, come in."

Shion stepped into the house, and followed her sister down a hallway.

"Is it not below the dignity of the head of the Sonozakis to open doors?" Shion mocked.

"Not when it's her sister coming to pick up her boyfriend, who has just had to endure the scrutiny of the family elders."

"What? Why were they..."

"You'll find out eventually."

Shion glared at the back of her sister's head. She really could be very annoying at times, but that did not matter: they were sisters, and the first rule of being siblings is that you have to annoy the hell out of each other at all costs.

Shion followed her twin into a spacious room with a table and sofa. On the sofa, arguing like their lives depended on it, were Keiichi and Satoshi.

"I think you'll find Mion is cuter," Keiichi said, with a smug smile.

"I think not, Shion is by far the cuter, and she is much sweeter of temperament," an enraged Satoshi half-shouted.

"Well Mi is far better at looking after herself."

"Is not."

"Is too"

"Is..." Satoshi at this point noticed the two women that they had been arguing about, standing about three feet away, Mion glaring at him, while Shion glared at Keiichi.

"Is too: Shion couldn't look protect herself from a wasp, she always has to have Kasai look after her, because she's too much of a wimp."

'SMACK'

'SMACK'

'THUD'

Keiichi was on the floor, with the imprint of each of the twins hand-prints on his cheeks.

"Couldn't protect myself from a wasp eh?"

"Keiichi how dare you say that about my sister?"

"Uh... I can explain."

"Really?" the girls said in unison.

"Uh... I'll be going now..." Keiichi took off fast down a hallway.

"Come back here Maebara!" Shion ran after him.

"Come here, unless you want to spend some time with me in the torture chamber Kei-kun!" Mion shouted, following her sister and fiance.

Satoshi just sat very still throughout, hoping that by the time Mion remembered what his own transgression, that she would have used all her energy up by torturing Keiichi. He could hear the trio running round the house, with the twins throwing insults at Keiichi, and him calling back to taunt them.

Eventually there was a loud crash, and the twins shouted, "We've got you now." A few crashes later, and the twins dragged Keiichi back into the room where Satoshi was waiting.

"That'll teach you to say such things, Kei-kun, I don't want you to say things like that about sis ever again."

Satoshi stared, from somewhere the twins had got their hands of a hairband with cat-ears and shorts with a tail, which they had forced on Keiichi. They had also applied marker pen on his face to make the overall effect... interesting to say the least.

While Satoshi laughed, Mion walked up to him, "Why are you laughing Satoshi, after all, you're next..."

"N-no, please spare me, Shion please stop her."

"Well, she stood up for me, so I'm hardly going to stop her now," Shion said smirking, "Also, I think you'd look cute as a neko."

-----

"I can't believe you just let her do that. Where did you find that second set of cat-girl stuff anyway?"

"Oh, Mion had it left over from the old punishment games, so once we caught Keiichi, we thought it would be fun to put them back to use."

"But he doesn't have to travel home in them, how is this fair?"

"Ah, well Mion is going to make him go shopping in it, so you're the one getting off lightly."

"Getting off lightly? I still have to let you drive me through town in this!"

Shion laughed and glanced over at him, neko-costume and all, it was quite an interesting sight, she thought. The twins had managed to find a blond set for Satoshi, as well as the brown set for Keiichi, and the pen on his face completed the overall effect. 'He's so adorable like this, so cute, and _I'm _the one who get to take this cute thing home.' That threw her mind back to what she had thought of earlier. She frowned, 'That damn Rena, she isn't going to get her hands on my Satoshi, I'll make sure of that.

Satoshi noticed her change of expression, "Is something wrong Shion?"

"Er... no, not really."

"Are you sure?"

"Erm... well."

Shion was glad that they had just arrived at their home, because it gave her a chance to avoid the question, while Satoshi tried to get up to the apartment as quickly as possible to avoid being seen in his present costume.

"Hurry up Shion, I'm sure you don't want anyone else to see me like this! What would they think of you if they saw your boyfriend in a cat costume?"

"They'd probably think it looked cute, and I like you like that, I hear that cats are very good for cuddling."

"Well I'll give you a hug when we get inside if you hurry up."

That got Shion to move faster: she ran up the stair, "Oh yes! My cat-boyfriend said he'd give me a hug if I hurry."

"Wow, I didn't expect you to be so excited by a hug."

Shion smiled at him and winked, "It's not the hug itself, but what comes afterwards that I'm excited about."

"Mi-ow, as they say," Satoshi replied, as the couple reached the front door. By the time they were on the other side they were already in a lip-lock. 'And my actions today mean that, very soon, this could become mine forever. This day just keeps getting better,' Satoshi thought as the two of them found their way to the bedroom.

-----

"Mion, I still can't believe you made me come shopping with you like this," Keiichi complained, as his fiancee dragged him round the shops in Hinamizawa.

"Well I can't believe you were so cruel to Shion, why were you arguing over us anyway?" Mion asked, as she stopped to look into one of the shop windows.

"Oh well Satoshi was in some sort of state where he was just staring into space, so I asked him why, and he said he was thinking about Shion, and I said that he shouldn't be so obsessed with her and that you were much better, and well, it degenerated intro that arguement," Keiichi said, "and I have to say, Shion's not done badly, that boy is really all for her: he'd do almost anything she asked of him."

"Well she does have enough cuteness to make any guy do anything for her. But why did you have to goad him into that fight?"

"Partly because I meant it when I said you were better, and partly because I wanted to know how he really felt, 'cause I knew you'd want to make sure he really did like her, so I thought I'd check."

"Really?"

"Yes, oh and I hadn't had a decent argument in ages."

"Idiot," Mion said, lightly hitting his head.

"Now can we get on with this, I want to get home quickly," Keiichi said as noticed some young children laughing a his clothes.

-----

_Shion was standing in a room with a row of seats down one side and various objects hanging around her on the walls.__ Before her was her grandmother in a wheelchair. Shion wasn't thinking what she was doing, she took a lighter, and pressed the flame to her grandmother's head. "We'll find out just how asleep you are_."

_She removed the flame, "I don't believe it, the wench is dead_, _with out a word to any one, not even an apology to Satoshi, it's not fair, and she didn't even have to suffer."_ _Shion grabbed a whip from a hook on the wall and started to lash at her grandmother's corpse._

_'Crack'_

_'Crack'_

_'Crack'  
_

'No, I can't have... I didn't kill her...'

_'Crack'_

_'CRACK'  
_

Shion woke up suddenly in here own bed, screaming "I didn't do it, I didn't kill her."

Satoshi was woken up, and quickly grabbed her, and pulled her into his arms as she started to sob. "I didn't... I can't have."

"Hush, it okay, you just had a nightmare, everything is okay, I'm here with you." Satoshi held her until she had stopped crying. After they had got home and Satoshi had given Shion her 'cuddle', they were too tired to do much else, so they had gone to bed, after Satoshi had washed the pen off his face. It was about 3 o'clock in the morning now, and although nobody is at their best at 3 in the morning, Satoshi tried to console his girlfriend as much as possible.

Eventually she stopped crying and looked up at him. He stroked her hair, "You okay now?"

Shion nodded, "Do you want to talk about it."

She nodded, "I was in the old torture chamber at the mansion, and grandma was there too, and I... I..." She broke down again, and Satoshi pulled her tightly into his arms.

"It's okay, it was just a dream."

"But... it was so... real."

"But it was still a dream, you wouldn't do that, you wouldn't kill your own family," Satoshi said, thinking of what he himself had done those six years ago.

Shion buried "Satoshi, please stay and hold me, I don't know what I'd do without you, I don't want you ever to leave me."

Satoshi kissed her forehead and whispered, "I'll always be here for you Shion, I love you more than anything else in the world, now rest, you need your sleep." He gently lay them both down, still holding each other tightly.

As Shion drifted off into a more peaceful sleep, Satoshi knew what he would have to do soon, 'If I don't get Irie to give her the cure then she'll keep on having these dreams, and keep on overreacting to even the slightest thing, and I can't watch her destroy herself like that, she deserves so much better.'

He kissed her and put his head down. Soon, the pair were both soundly sleeping.

-----

A/N: My thanks to reviewers. Please can you give me more though, 3 total is hardly what I'd call brilliant. Note that the scene in the middle is taken directly from the english dub, so the wording might be a bit different from that of the subs.

Bis Bald

BW


	6. The Storm Before The Calm

A/N: can some one review, PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE! PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE!PLEASE! With that over, here goes Chapter 6.

It's Been So Long, Ch6: The Storm, Before The Calm

_Can you believe in this?_

"Come on Satoshi, do you want to keep your girlfriend waiting?"

"No Shion, and what's with the third person?"

"Oh, so your education didn't go to waste."

"Great way to avoid a question," Satoshi mumbled, as he pulled on a pair of socks. He had, for some reason, agreed to go to Hinamizawa with Shion, to do 'This and that' as she put it. Actually, he knew exactly what he was going to have to do, he had to get Shion to the clinic, somehow, to get her checked for the disease. However, he did not want to worry her, and so had not told her that part of his plans. He just hoped that nothing would go wrong in the meantime.

Satoshi walked to the door and pulled on his shoes. Shion tapped her foot impatiently. Satoshi looked up at her, "Can't you wait for five minutes?"

"I've had enough of waiting for you in my life, so could you _please _hurry up."

Satoshi laughed a little, as he tied his laces, then stood ready to leave, "Shall we?"

Shion smiled, "Finally, let's go." She half-skipped out the door, with Satoshi walking casually behind. He was doing his best to hide his worry about the girl, and she seemed sufficiently happy that he should have lost all worry, if it were not for that dream.

_"Hush, it okay, you just had a nightmare, everything is okay, I'm here with you." Satoshi held her until she had stopped crying. After they had got home and Satoshi had given Shion her 'cuddle', they were too tired to do much else, so they had gone to bed, after Satoshi had washed the pen off his face. It was about 3 o'clock in the morning now, and although nobody is at their best at 3 in the morning, Satoshi tried to console his girlfriend as much as possible._

_Eventually she stopped crying and looked up at him. He stroked her hair, "You okay now?"_

_Shion nodded, "Do you want to talk about it."_

_She nodded, "I was in the old torture chamber at the mansion, and grandma was there too, and I... I..."_

That had pained him a lot. He was now really worried about her, and until she was cured, he doubted that his fears would subside.

"Hurry up Satoshi! If you don't hurry then I'll get out that cat costume again," Shion threatened from half-way down the stairs.

Satoshi smiled and ran after her, maybe, just maybe, everything would be alright.

-----

Walking through the streets of Hinamizawa was one experience that Satoshi now wanted to forget as soon as possible. All the way there had been whispers. "The Hojo boy, with Miss Shion?" "I heard that he ran off for six years, and didn't send any word back, worrying his poor sister, she tried to kill herself you know." "I heard that he and Miss Shion are living together now, she's probably trying to make sure that he doesn't run off again."

If it was not the dam war, it had to be something else, if they only knew the truth, he had not chosen to leave, he had wanted to stay with his sister and the beautiful girl by his side, but fate had been a bitch, was that his fault?

Shion noticed his uneasiness, and squeezed his hand, moving a little closer to him, "It's okay, those idiots and they're stupid rumors don't have a clue about anything Satoshi-kun, don't let it get to you."

Satoshi's frown changed to a smile, and he squeezed her hand back. They walked on, past shops selling all kinds of things. Shion was still walking right up against Satoshi. Then they heard someone calling, "Shion! Satoshi!"

Shion stiffened, 'that voice, it's Rena.' The couple turned, to see the orange-haired girl run towards them. "It's nice to see you, it is!"

"Hi Rena," Satoshi said, he hadn't noticed Shion's change of demeanor. Shion stayed silent.

"How've you been? I haven't seen you in ages."

"Oh okay," Satoshi was still doing all the talking.

"Shion, you okay? You look a little off colour."

Shion gulped. 'Damn, Rena noticed,' she mentally cursed. "I'm fine," she said, in a harsh tone.

Satoshi knew what was happening, 'Shit, if I don't do something quickly, then... got it!' He put his free hand to her forhead saying, "Are you sure? You look a little pale, I don't want you to get ill Shion."

That calmed her down. She smiled at her attentive boyfriend, "I'm fine, really Satoshi, you don't have to worry."

"Are you sure? If you feel unwell then I can take you to the clinic."

"I'm really okay Satoshi, and I don't want to waste time over nothing, and when I'm with you I feel great the whole time."

Rena remained quiet behind them, with a wistful expression, she wished that she had an attentive boyfriend like that. Then Shion looked at Rena, that face she was pulling, she wanted to get her hands on Satoshi, that was clear. Shion could barely contain her anger, but somehow managed. She managed to speak without sounding angry, "Hey Rena, we were just heading off to Rika's, want to join us?"

"Sure thing, I was heading there myself."

'Damn, I hoped that she'd say no, still, with Satoko there, I can leave her to make sure nobody makes any advances on Satoshi,' Shion thought, she smiled sweetly though, saying "Let's go then."

-----

The three had made their way to the Furude shrine without much incident. Rena and Satoshi had been chatting the whole way, while Shion silently fumed. She went to knock on the door.

Rika answered, "Oh, hello Shion, Satoshi, Rena, nice to see you, do come in, I'll go get the others." They all steped into the living room, while Rika ran off to find Satoko and Hanyu. Rena and Shion sat down, while Satoshi stayed on his feet.

The other three came in, and they all started chatting. Shion eventually left to go to the bathroom. And then Rena walked over to Satoshi, "Satoshi, is there something wrong with Shion? She's been acting really strange."

Satoshi was immediately worried, 'If others are noticing, then I'd better get her treated soon.' He replied vaguely, "Uh, I dunno, she has been acting a little oddly I suppose." They were both walking to sit down, when Rena accidentally tripped on the side of the table in the middle of the room, knocking into Satoshi. They ended up on the floor, with Rena on top of Satoshi, with her skirt draped over his head, giving him a wonderful view of her underwear.

Of course, Shion walked in about three seconds later, to a very red Rena and Satoshi. She did not even think about what could have happened, she immediately grabbed the nearest blunt object she could: a chair, and raised it above her head. "What the HELL do you think you're doing to my boyfriend?"

"Shion it was an accident," Rika started, grabbing at Shion's arm, but she was shrugged off.

"You BITCH, trying to steal my boyfriend are you? You deserve to die!"

"Nee-Nee, don't," that was Satoko, Shion still paid no attention, and threw the chair towards Rena, shouting "DIE." Somehow, Satoshi managed to get Rena off him, and stopped the chair with his arm. It still knocked him to the ground.

Shion gasped and fell to her knees, "Satoshi, no I hurt Satoshi." Suddenly, she was on her feet, and running as if a pack of demons was after her. Satoshi was after her seconds later.

Back inside, Rena was still dazed, Hanyu was in a corner, doing her best not to wet herself, Rika was picking herself up off the floor where she had landed after Shion had thrown her off, and Satoko was staring at the door that her brother and close friend had just run out of. "What just happened?" Satoko asked quietly.

"Shion thought that Rena was trying to take Satoshi from her, though why exactly she wouldn't listen to us I have no idea," said Rika, who actually knew exactly why Shion had not listened.

"Hauuu~, this is bad," Hanyu said from a corner, a dark stain having appeared on her skirt.

Rena was still stunned by what had happened, and merely said, "I hope that they're okay."

Nobody bothered to pick up the fallen chair.

-----

Shion was running, where to she had no idea, she just needed to get away from there. There were tears in her eyes, making her vision blurry, so much so that she ran into someone. She chocked out a "Sorry," but then a hand grabbed her.

She was turned to face a man, she could barely make him out through her tears, with two others, one on each side. "Sorry eh, I don't think that that's good enough, what do you think guys?" he asked his friends. They shook their heads, "It's time you repaid us I think."

The two men to his side each grabbed one of Shion's arms, and started to drag her into the nearby woods. She screamed, then the first man clamped a hand over her mouth. "Don't make a noise, or I'll make it hurt so much more!" She bit his hand, he cursed, "You BITCH!" he slapped her.

Shion's mind was in overdrive, trying to find a way out of the situation. As the man hit her she screamed again, earning her a punch. "You keep quiet, I don't wanna spoil that pretty face of yours." She looked with anger up at the man who recognised her, "Oh wow, it that slut of Hojo's, well well, it looks like what we have planned may be familiar to her." He grabbed her top and ripped it off to reveal her bra. "Wow, they are big ones, I always thought she put melons down her top, but they're real. Well time for fun." He pulled off her bra, while his friends held her against a tree and pulled her skirt off.

Shion was in mental turmoil, 'I'm about to have my first time taken by some bastard I've never met before, this can't be happening.' Then she realised something, the men were not holding her legs. 'Here goes nothing,' she put her legs together and swung them both up to hit the bastard straight in the balls, using the men to holding her arms to keep herself up. "Shit, you BITCH!" The man punched at her again, but Shion moved her head, and his fist hit the tree behind her.

Then one of the other men noticed the taser, "Boss, we can use this to send her to sleep, then do it and run."

The leader smiled, "Well miss slut, it's sleepy time for you now."

As Shion saw the taser coming closer, she screamed one more time. Then everything went black.

-----

Satoshi was panicking, he was sure that Shion had run this way, then he heard a scream, 'Shion.' He ran into the woods after the scream. A man was shouting "BITCH." Another scream, 'Where is she?' Then he saw them, just as Shion screamed again, and the taser knocked her out. Satoshi saw red, and grabbed at a tree branch.

One of the men spoke "Now Hojo's little slut is all ours."

"I don't think you should say things like that... about other people's girlfriends." The three men turned, to see the furious Satoshi, just as he brought the branch down on their leader's head. There was a resounding 'CRACK,' and the man fell unconscious. The other two tried to move, but Satoshi was like a man possesed by a daemon. Two more 'CRACK's were heard, then two more 'THUD's. Satoshi dropped the branch and knelt by the half-naked Shion. She was completely unconscious, and had a couple of bruises. "Shion, thank goodness you're okay." Then he looked around and spotted a pay-phone. He quickly got inside and dialed.

_"This is the operater, which service do you require?"_

"The police."

-----

Shion woke up in a clean, white bed, in a clean, white room. She could hear people talking through an open door. "Manager, how is she?"

"She should be fine, she only received minor bruises and the shock was only enough to knock her out, she was lucky."

"Do you know if those bastards did anything to her beyond that?" Shion caught her breath, 'They didn't, please say...'

"No, they didn't get the chance. She still even had her panties on, they didn't get that far fortunately." Shion sighed with relief.

"May I see her?"

"Of course."

Shion smiled as Satoshi walked in. "Satoshi..."

Satoshi was by her side in seconds, and his lips pressed onto hers. When he pulled back he smiled, "I'm so glad you're okay."

"What happened after they knocked me out?"

Satoshi pulled up a chair. "Well I had just found you when they tasered you, and I grabbed a tree branch and knocked them out. Then I called the police, and those three bastards are now under arrest. They've been charged, so soon they should be behind bars."

Shion smiled, then remembered something, "Oh God, I forgot, h-how's Rena."

Satoshi paled a little, "She's okay, and about that, Irie did a check-up, and found out that you have a bad case of Hinamizawa syndrome, so he wants to vaccinate you as soon as you're feeling better."

It all suddenly made sense to Shion, her dreams, her worrying about losing Satoshi, her cruelty to Rena. She gulped, "So that was why..."

"Yes, but don't let it worry you too much, everyone is just fine now," he leant in and kissed her again. "And now," he said as he sat up again, "there's something I want to ask you."

"What is it?" Shion asked, very curious.

"Shion, I know that we need each other close, I know that I can't live without you, and that you say you can't without me, so..." he took out a box from a pocket, and Shion's eyes widened as he opened it, revealing a gold ring, with an emerald in it. "I know this isn't very romantic, but after last night, I want to make sure you're always mine. Shion, will you marry me?"

The sudden kiss he recieved was answer enough.

-----

Dr. Irie quietly moved away from the door where he had watched the young couple. He walked into his office.

"Well, how's that brother of mine doing?" Irie turned to look at the speaker: his blonde fiancee.

"I think that he pulled it off well enough," he answered.

Satoko smiled, "And her answer?"

"She gave a similar answer to when I asked you," the doctor answered, smiling at the memory.

"Hohoho... well, I wonder how long until their wedding."

"Who knows? Speaking of which, what about us?"

"Why the hurry? I'm not even out of school yet."

"I just wanna know when I get the wonderful Satoko Hojo as my wife."

"Soon enough."

-----

Satoshi had gone to speak to Dr. Irie and heard the end of the conversation. 'Must not kill Satoko's fiance, must not kill that bastard fiance.' Then he heard them kissing, and his face went pale, 'Why couldn't she be a lesbian with Rika? Why did she have to chose to be straight if it meant being with that pervert.'

He walked back to Shion's room. She looked up at him, and noticed his pale face. "What's wrong?"

"I just heard Dr. Irie and Satoko, in his office..."

Shion raised an eyebrow, "Even we haven't gone that far.

"No, they weren't doing that ahhhh..." he cried out as the image came into his head of the doctor and his sister...

Shion laughed at his expression. "Well maybe later we can do something like what you're imagining, my handsome fiance."

That brought a smile back to Satoshi's face, as he looked at the ring adorning Shion's left hand. "Maybe, but first you need to get better. Do you think a kiss would help?"

"We'll have to try it and see," Shion said, before they pressed their lips together.

-----

A/N: as above, please review. I might not review for a while, it depends on my workload, but some reviews might speed things up a little _HINT HINT_.

Bis Bald

BW


	7. Perfection?

It's Been So Long, Ch7: Perfection?

It was late in the evening, and Shion was still lying in the same hospital bed as she had since the evening. Although she had not been hurt too badly, Dr. Irie had insisted that she stay one night, just to be sure that nothing was wrong, and so that he could prepare the injection to end her syndrome-related troubles. She stared at the ceiling, trying, and failing, to sleep. She had not done a thing all day, so she was not really tired. She thought about what had happened over the past couple of days, and frowned a little, before remembering the most recent development. She looked down at the ring that she had on her finger. That was enough to turn her frown into a smile, 'I'm engaged to Satoshi, we'll be married soon, then we'll be happy forever together...' Her thought train then descended into romantic mush, which would be hard to put into words, without vomiting several times before the end. Suffice it to say that Shion was about 20 stages beyond happy.

Eventually, she pulled her mind back to the real world, sighing heavily, 'Before we can get married though, I have to be at those men's trial, that will not be fun, and Satoshi will have to testify too, I hope he'll be okay with that...'

She looked up at the plain ceiling again, and let her fears subside, 'That's a good way off, for now, I should just enjoy being with Satoshi.' She closed her eyes, believing that nothing could tear her from her beloved fiance, and with that thought, she promptly fell asleep.

-----

Shion walked hand in hand with Satoshi. She was scared now, but she had to apologise to Rena about what had happened. Satoshi noticed her unease, "Don't worry Shion, I'm here for you, and it's only Rena, she's not that scary, right?"

Shion nodded, but remained silent, she still felt like running and cowering in the nearest corner. Satoshi put his arm round her, pulling her closer. "It's okay, she's not going to bite your head off for what happened, and it was the syndromes' fault."

"But it was still me that did it, I was the one who shouted at Rena, and it was me that tried to throw that chair at her, and I was the one who ended up hurting you," tears formed in her eyes, "I'm so horrible, I don't deserve anyone's forgiveness, even if I was ill, that's no excuse."

Satoshi put his arms both round Shion, as the tears started to fall and she buried her face in his shoulder. "It's okay, I'm here, and everyone forgives you already." He kissed the top of her head and waited for the tears to pass.

Shion eventually looked up at Satoshi, and looked into his dark eyes. She blinked a few times, and wiped her eyes, then looked at him again, and pulled her face into a smile. He smiled back, and removed his arms, but took her hand in his, and they continued to Rena's. 'If I did anything wrong,' Shion thought to herself, 'at least Satoshi is here for me, and he'll look after me.' As they walked on, a smile came to her face, 'I chose the right man to fall in love with.'

-----

Shion walked slowly up to her apartment, her hand in Satoshi's. The visit to Rena's had been less terrifying than she had thought it would be. They had hardly talked about the events of that unfortunate evening, and everything seemed to be back to a semblance of normality. 'Normal, yeah right, we still have to appear as witnesses at the trial. But at least now Satoshi and I are engaged, that's one abnormal thing that I'm very happy with.'

They reached the apartment, and went in. Satoshi let go of her hand and walked to the bathroom. Shion just stood there for a few minutes, thinking over everything that had happened for the umpteenth time. Then she walked into the kitchen, and thought about what to cook for dinner. As she continued to ponder, the phone rang. She took the receiver and put it to her ear slowly.

"Hello."

_"Hey Shi, it's Mion here."_

"Oh, hi Mion_. _It's been a while."

_"Yeah, sorry that I didn't come and see you, I didn't hear about what happened until earlier today, and when I got to the clinic, you'd already left."_

"Oh, well that's okay."

_"So is it true?"_

"Is what true dare I ask?" Shion asked, knowing full well what Mion meant.

_"We~ll, Manager said that you and Satoshi were_ 'ahem,' _even more a couple."_

"If you mean 'are we engaged?' then I have to admit that we are."

_"Wow, that's brilliant sis! Congratulations!"_

"Well we had to go through Hell to get there."

_"Yeah, I know, but you're okay now?"_

"Yeah, I'm fine, and I'm glad that I don't have to sleep alone again tonight, it was so lonely without Satoshi by my side last night."

_"So have you done it yet?"_

"Mion! That's none of your business."

_"I take it that you haven't yet, you should you know, it's amazingly good. If Satoshi is anything like as big as Kei-Kun..."_

"MION, I do NOT want to know about your intimate time with Keiichi, and it's none of your business about Satoshi's hugeness."

_"Oh, how huge?"_

"Trust me, Keiichi wouldn't stand a chance of comparing, unless he is hiding the Empire State Building behind his flies."

_"Lucky you then, awww my virgin sister is going to lose it to such a massive..."_

"MION!"

_"What? You're the one who said it was so huge."_

"I didn't invite you to then dissect my love life."

_"But that's what I'm here for."_

"Urgh, sometimes you are the most annoying person on Earth."

_"But I am your sister."_

"True, that must be why I haven't ripped your head off yet."

_"Haha, I hope that was a joke."_

"I'll leave you to ponder that one, while I get the taser ready."

_"Um... bye then."_

"Bye." Shion hung up, and put the phone down, then turned to see a somewhat distressed Satoshi.

"Wh-why were your talking about how big my... 'mini-me' is."

"Well Mion and I were doing a quick comparison, and I'm sure yours is much bigger than Keiichi's, not that I've seen either of them."

A smirk appeared on Satoshi's face. "Well, in that case I could always show you. After all you've been through, you deserve to have some fun."

"What about dinner?"

"Oh, you want something to eat? Well..." Satoshi walked up to her and lifted her off her feet, and carried her towards the bedroom.

"Satoshi?"

"We are engaged now aren't we? I thought I'd show you just how much I love you." He pressed his lips to hers, and Shion was instantly lost to the kiss. She didn't care what happened next, she was happy beyond belief. But then of course, her happiness was set to increase.

-----

Lemon warning for any offended.

-----

Satoshi lay her down on the bed, and kissed her again and again. 'Is this Heaven?' Shion wondered to herself. She felt Satoshi shift himself a little, and then felt his hand on her breast, stroking it through the fabric of her t-shirt. She gasped a little at the contact.

Satoshi smirked, "Do you like it?"

A few more gasps were his reply. He then removed his hand and slid it under the t-shirt, reaching up to her bra. He then quickly pulled the t-shirt off, exposing her bra, which was also quickly removed, and thrown to the floor. Satoshi started to kiss the girl again, as his hands worked on her large breasts. His kisses moved from her lips down her face, to her throat, repeatedly flicking his tongue to taste her soft skin. Under the work of the strong hands, Shion's breasts quickly hardened, and she moaned again.

Satoshi's lips traveled further down, until they replaced his right hand at Shion's breast, licking it then sucking on it. His hand, now free to roam, travelled down towards Shion's skirt. It slipped it gently of, while Satishi's other hand and mouth continued to please Shion.

Then Satoshi moved of Shion, and repositioned himself, with his head between her legs, his mouth only inches from her panties, and what they concealed. He removed the offending article, then looked up to Shion's face. She tutted at him, "It's rude to start eating before others are ready!" Satoshi smiled at this, as Shion pulled him on to the bed again, and started kissing him, all the while undressing him.

When she reached his boxers, she noticed the huge tent caused by his erection. She smiled wickedly, as she slowly removed the clothing. When she had spoken to Mion, she had no idea how right she was about the size. She briefly wondered if it would fit in her, before moving her legs to put her dripping womanhood right in front of Satoshi. He got the message and brought his lips to her lower lips. He thought she tasted sweet, and furiously licked her to get as much of the liquid as he could. Shion in turn lowered her lips to Satoshi's erection, and took the head in her mouth, licking it gently. She then took as much as she could in one go, fitting most of it in, but almost gagging on it. She sucked and licked it, as Satoshi continued his desperate licking.

Neither of them lasted long, as the sudden presence of extra liquid from Shion's release in turn triggered Satoshi's. Shion swallowed down her 'meal' while Satoshi continued to lick the last of what he could get off Shion's womanhood. Shion rolled off Satoshi, keeping her legs wide. He moved on top of her, kissing her again. "You ready?" he asked her.

She smiled up at him, "I've been ready for a long time."

Satoshi moved him self to just outside her entrance, then slowly entered her. He felt her tightly round his manhood, and he pressed in deeper, until he met her barrier. Then he kissed her and pushed through.

Shion felt the pain, but felt Satoshi's kiss saying 'sorry,' and kissed back, answering 'it's okay.' Satoshi felt the warm blood on him, and held still for a moment, until he felt her return the kiss, when he started moving slowly again.

The pain that Shion was fealing slowly turned to something else: pleasure, pure pleasure. She started moving her own hips to meet his thrusts, urging him to go faster. He understood and thrust in harder and faster.

They both felt their climaxes drawing close, then Satoshi felt Shion tighten around him, and heard her call "Satoshi", and lost control himself. They kissed, then broke off, as Satoshi colapsed next to Shion.

-----

Lemon warning over.

-----

_"You did it! Finally! You two took your sweet time over it."_

Shion grumbled down the phone to her sister, "Look, you know perfectly well that we wanted to wait until we were at least engaged, and can you not broadcast this to the entire world, I only told you so that you would stop pestering me about it."

_"Well regardless, congratulations again. Now how long until we see some little Hojos?"_

"I don't see any little Maebaras yet, so why should I hurry?"

_"Well Satoshi is a year older than Kei-kun, so you should have children first."_

"Well you're about two minutes older than me."

_"That's insignificant!"_

"Oh really? Says you who ended up basically owning a village."

_"Well in the end Grandma didn't leave you in a ditch exactly."_

"Yeah, but I don't have a load of people work for me, who'd lick my shoes on command."

_"I don't need to pay people to lick my shoes, Keiichi does that for free!"_

"I really hope you are joking."

_"Maybe. Anyway, I need to go, we have a council meeting soon,"_ Shion could almost hear the face her sister was pulling,_ "I'll see you soon."_

"Okay, bye." Shion hung up the phone. Satoshi had still been asleep, but after that call, and the usual shouting, she doubted he would be. As if on cue, when she turned around, he was standing right behind her, leaning against the door-frame. "Do you always have to do that? Every time I'm on the phone you come in behind me."

"Well with your sister, I worry about what the subject matter will be," he replied, walking up and embracing her. "So, how are you this morning?"

"Okay, but hungry. Last night's meal was delicious, but not very filling."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," he said kissing her.

Shion broke off the kiss, "If we carry on like this, we won't eat anything at all, and while a day in bed does sound nice, I would rather not starve to death. Also I have a shift later."

"Okay, okay, we can carry on later," Satoshi said, letting her go.

Shion started to make the food, and Satoshi sat down. They were a happy couple, everything seemed so... perfect.

-----

_Tokyo mental hospital, 20:52._

"Have you heard? Their going to be taking that patient out soon. Someone's found a cure for her condition."

The other cleaner turned to his workmate, "You mean that blonde woman, the one who attempted murder?"

"Yeah, they say that they've found this cure, about time, she freaked everyone out, with all the screaming. Well... until they had to gag her so she couldn't bite her tongue out."

The men went about their business, while the woman in question was sitting in her straight-jacket, just as always, with one thing running through her head, 'That green-haired bitch ruined my plans, I'll kill her, I'll kill her, I'll kill Mion Sonozaki.'

-----

A/N: Hm... lucky Satoshi, getting into Shion's bed and doing all that to my favourate chatracter _-has perverted daydream- -faints from blood rushing downstairs-_

_-Pulls self off floor-_ Anyway, please review this, non-reviewers are my worst enemy, and I shall take it upon myself to purge their existance from this world, with my rightious fury, or some random crap like that, whatever floats my boat.

Bis Bald

BW


	8. Trials and Tribulations

It's Been so Long, Ch8 : Trials and Tribulations

"To the charge of attempted rape, how do you plead?"

"Not Guilty."

Shion sat waiting for the time to testify, she had hoped that she would not have to, that the men would plead guilty, but of course, they would try to avoid prison for as much as possible. She was shaking a little, until a hand was placed on her left one. She looked to see Satoshi smiling in the seat next to her. His smile seemed to say 'It's okay, we'll get though this.'

It had been three weeks since the incident, and it was finally time for the men's trials. There was plenty of evidence against the men, but they still did not admit their crime. Satoko, Irie, Keiichi and Mion, as well as the twins' parents were in the gallery watching.

"The prosecution calls the victim, Ms Shion Sononzaki to the stand." The middle-aged prosecutor, a Mr. Houritsu, had explained just what would happen, just what questions he himself would ask. She was not afraid of this part. She walked up to the witness-stand.

-----

"Ms Sonozaki," the defense lawyer began, "You say these men attacked and tried to rape you, but is that really the case, or did you let them?"

"Of course not!" Shion started, "Unless you think I let them taser me."

"Ah, but why didn't you use it on them?"

"Two of them grabbed my arms, I couldn't reach it." Shion had known the lawyer might ask this sort of thing. She had to stay firm.

"But why were you running that way in the first place?"

"I-I had had a big argument with my friends and my boyfriend, it ended badly, and I ran out in tears. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going, so I accidentally ran right into one of those men."

"This argument, what was it about?"

Shion froze for a second, glancing at Mr. Houritsu. The prosecutor stood up, "You Honour, I object to this irrelevant line of questioning, what this argument was about has nothing to do with this case."

The judge looked thoughtful, "Does the defense have any reason related to the case to ask these questions?"

"Until I hear her answer, I don't know if it is important."

The judge nodded, "Well Ms Sonozaki, please answer the question."

Shion looked blankly forward and said, "I thought one of my friends and my boyfriend were..." She did not need to finish, the defense lawyer smirked.

"So then, I believe that you wanted to get back at your boyfriend and found the first possible other person to sleep with."

Shion looked shocked. In his seat, Satoshi balled his fists, ready to beat the lawyer into a pulp. Shion regained some composure, "I would never do anything like that, and it does not explain the taser."

"Oh? Well I think it is perfectly possible that it went off by accident while removing your clothes."

Shion's eyes were open wide, a look of pure shock obvious, "Y-you... you think I would betray my Satoshi-kun..." tears started to form in her eyes, "You accuse me of not being faithful to him..."

"I say that you tried to have sex with these men, but then your self-defense weapon accidentally knocked you out. This explains everything. When you came to, you claimed you were raped, so that your boyfriend would not leave you..."

Shion did not hear any more, she fainted, and collapsed at the stand. Satoshi saw her falling, and rushed to catch her. He lifted her into his arms, and Mr. Houritsu showed him outside as the judge called for a twenty minute recess.

-----

Satoshi sat in a chair outside the courtroom, next to a sofa where he had lain Shion down. He had her left hand in his own, and was watching her face for any sign of her waking up.

"Satoshi..." he heard her murmur. "Satoshi... I didn't... I couldn't do that... I... I..."

"Shion, it's okay, wake up now Shion please, I need you to wake up now." Satoshi clenched her hand a little tighter, "I know all of what that man said was a lie, I know you would never do anything like that, but that man will help those others escape if we don't prove him wrong." He stroked some hair out of her face with his free hand. "Shion..."

"Satoshi..." Shion's eyes fluttered open. "Satoshi, I'll do it... I'll go back in there."

Satoshi smiled, "This is the you I really love, the girl who'll do anything that she has to to reach her goal, the one who is also sweet and kind and who I can always trust..." he lent in and kissed her.

Mr. Houritsu stood in the doorway, watching the pair, when they broke apart, he cleared his throat, "Ahem, are you ready to go back in now Ms Sonozaki?"

Shion sat up, still holding her fiance's hand, "Yes, I'm ready."

"Very well..."

-----

"Court is reconvened. Do either the prosecution or the defence wish to ask further questions to this witness?"

"No more questions," Mr. Houritsu said.

"No more questions," the lawyer said, to Shion's surprise. 'How can I stop this idea if they won't ask me further questions...'

"In that case, will the prosecution call its next witness?"

"I call Satoshi Hojo, fiance of the victim to the stand."

Satoshi stood, and walked to the stand, ready for what the defence might throw at him.

"May I ask one detail before we start?" The judge began, "So far, Mr. Hojo, you have been referred to as Ms Sonozaki's boyfriend, yet the prosecution just introduced you as her fiance. Would you explain this to the court."

"Certainly your Honour. At the time of the incident, we were only boy and girlfriend. Shortly afterwards, however, I proposed to her." For some reason, when he said this, the defense lawyer smirked.

"Very well, continue..."

-----

"Mr. Hojo," the defence lawyer began his question once the main events were described, "First, Ms Sonozaki mentioned her belief that you were being unfaithful to her, was this the case?"

"No, she was just a little paranoid about my relationship with a friend of ours."

"Second, this fact that you proposed to Ms Sonozaki shortly after this all happened, was it because of the incident?"

"Partly, although I had planned to ask her eventually regardless."

"Was it to increase her trust in you?"

"What do you mean?"

"She believed you were in a second relationship, so did you propose to quell such fears?"

"In part I suppose that is why I did it so soon... but why does that matter?"

"Was it to show that you forgave her for what she did with these men? Trying to take out her anger by having sex with other men?"

"She didn't..."

"Oh really? I believe that you have been lying to cover up what she did, to try to deny it, and to prevent your own arrest. Mr. Hojo, I believe that you found these men and your girlfriend in preparation for having sex, then attacked the men, and your girlfriend. You then threatened her, to make her lie about the rape, and got engaged so as to make the lie more convincing."

Satoshi glared at the man, "How can you say that? How can you? You have no proof that anything happened other than what we said, you're making it all up! Don't say that Shion would ever do anything like that!" He was shouting now, "You're the lier here, not me and Shion! Do you think I could hurt her?" He was half in tears by this point.

"I merely stated the possibility," the odiouse man replied.

"Your honour, I object to this baseless conjecture," Mr. Houritsu said.

"Does the defence have any proof of it's allegations?" the judge asked.

"I wish you to note the facts in this newspaper from six years ago," the lawyer held up a paper, "It mentions the disappearence of Mr. Hojo here. The next time any record of him is found is of him sending a present: a stuffed bear, to his sister three years later. From then until two months ago, there is no trace of him. Consider his character, if he leaves without trace for six years, what kind of heartless person could do that? The same one standing before you, who set up three other men to take his fall."

Satoshi looked straight ahead, blankly, "I never thought... I would have to tell anyone else what happened for those six years..." He looked up at the gallery, to Satoko, who wore a pained expression, just like the ones that Shion and Mion had at the moment. He looked to the defence lawyer, with a cold glare, "For those six years, I was in hospital, in a deep coma, it was a rare disease, kept quiet for fear of causing a panic... and I had it badly. I slept for six long years, until a cure was found, by a doctor who is here in the gallery today, he will confirm what I am saying to be true..." Satoshi looked back at Satoko, who was looking at Irie for an explanation. The doctor had a sad look on his face, and turned to face Satoko. Satoshi thought he saw the doctor's lips make the words 'I'm sorry.'

Satoshi looked back at the lawyer, "Do you understand? I did not leave by choice. And before you ask, that bear was a present I had meant for my sister. It was sent by Shion and my doctor, to relieve Satoko's depression caused by my absence... nobody told her... to protect her..." He had tears in his eyes as he choked out "So if you think... I'm a heartless monster for leaving... now the whole world knows the truth... and I could never hurt Shion... she was the one who visited me whenever she could... I could never hurt her." He broke down into sobs.

The judge looked down at the now heavily sweating defence lawyer, "Has the defence finished unnecersarily dragging up unfortunate times in the witness' past?"

"Y-your Honour I didn't mean to..."

"Mr. Hojo, you may leave the stand, we do not need confirmation of your testimony, as it is clear from the expression of those in the gallery that it is true."

Satoshi looked to see Satoko crying against Irie, as he led her up the stairs and out of the court room, a grief-stricken look in his eyes. Satoshi returned to his seat, and the judge turned to the jury, "Do you need any more evidence to confirm your verdict?"

"I believe not your honour," the spokesman replied.

"Then how do you find the defendants?"

"Guilty on all charges."

-----

Satoshi and Shion walked out of the courtroom hand-in-hand, Shion turned to look him in the eye, "Satoshi, are you okay?"

"Just about," he said, looking down at the floor.

"I wish you hadn't had to tell them about all that... I hope Satoko's okay."

Satoshi looked up at Shion again, "I hope so too..."

-----

"Why didn't you tell me?" Satoko said, with a distant look in her eyes. They were in a private room in the courthouse.

"If I had told you that your brother was on the verge of death, how do you think you would have reacted if we told you, especially with the syndrome to consider?"

"I... I don't know."

"We did it to protect you... because we didn't know if you could handle it."

"But you told Nee-Nee."

Irie lowered his eyes to the floor, "Because if I hadn't told her she might have gone mad, as she may have thought her family was behind his disappearance. Also she loved him in a different way from you. Without him, her whole life was centered around looking after you, and that would only last so long." He lloked back up at the girl, "I just didn't want you hurt Satoko... I love you..."

Satoko's frown turned into a small smile, "I love you too Kyosuke."

-----

'Phew, that was close,' Shion thought, as she heard the end of the couple's conversation through the door, while trying to restrain Satoshi as they heard the couple kissing inside, "Bad boy Satoshi, you mustn't do that sort of thing, unless you want to be banished to the couch tonight." That stopped his struggles.

-----

A/N: I find lots of people guilty of not reviwing, this is starting to piss me off. Review, or I wil scoop out your testicles with a rusty spoon if you are a guy. Girls: I can't hurt a girl, that'd be cruel.

Bis Bald

BW


	9. A Shot In The Dark

It's Been So Long, Ch9: Shot in the Dark

Shion slowly opened her eyes. Was the Saturday after the trial. Now everything was truly back to normal. Her gaze fell upon the boy sleeping next to her. He was always sleeping like a log these days. It was hardly surprising: to make up for the years he missed he was now on an adult education course, so he could actually get some qualifications, and although he certainly was not stupid, he was hardly the brightest person ever. As well as that, he had managed to get a job at a shop in Okinomiya. It did not pay well, but that hardly mattered, as Shion was working too and they had plenty of money saved up anyway. They just wanted a little extra, so they could be prepared. Shion stoked her stomach softly. She was almost at one month now. Another eight and then...

Shion smiled as she always did when she thought about her future with Satoshi, and one more now. She had told Satoshi about it, and he was as happy as she was. She had also told he sister, although that was mainly to stop her pestering Shion about how she should hurry up and have children. 'Soon there will be a little Hojo, I can't wait,' Shion looked at the father-to-be, 'And neither can he.'

Satoshi started to wake. He opened his eyes to see the smiling Shion looking across at him. He smiled back "Morning Shion."

"Morning," Shion replied, sitting up. Then something hit her, 'On shit, not again.' She ran to the bathroom. Satoshi got up quickly and followed her. He reached the bathroom just in time to hold back her hair while she vomited violently into the toilet. 'This is what I so _love_ about pregnancy,' Shion thought, 'I get to see what I had for dinner last night again.'

Satoshi knelt by her, gently holding the soft green wave away from her face, and rubbing her back. When she took her head away from the toilet, he flushed it, and gave her some paper to clean her face. She muttered a brief "Thank you" before wiping her mouth. Eventually she stood and they left the bathroom.

"You okay now?" Satoshi asked as he led her through to the Kitchen.

"Yeah, although that's only twice in four days, it's not too bad, yet." They couple had only known for a few days, and only after visiting the Irie clinic to find out what was wrong with Shion. The doctor had laughed for ages at the surprise on their faces when he told them the results of the tests.

"Do you want some breakfast now? I can make you something if you want." Satoshi was a little concerned about his fiancee. After all, it's not every day that you find out that you soon-to-be wife is pregnant.

"Yes please Satoshi," Shion sat down on the nearest chair to rest. She had only just woken up, but she still felt like crap. Vomiting had not been on her agenda that morning. Also, she was going over to Mion's later, so that her sister could get excited over Shion's pregnancy, and although it would be nice to see Mion, it would probably be extremely tiring.

Satoshi started to look for something to have for breakfast. He was not a very good cook, so he tried to find something simple. He found a loaf of bread and stuck a few slices in the toaster, then went to the fridge to find some butter. When he'd found it, he went back to Shion and put his arms round her shoulders. She lay her head sideways ontop of one of his arms. "Oh Satoshi, you're so sweet."

"And you're so beautiful, my dear Shion," Satoshi said, moving round to be infront of her, then pressing his lips to hers. They only broke off when the toaster sounded that it was ready.

-----

A van was driving along the winding road to Hinamizawa. In the back, a blonde woman was tied up and gagged. 'I will kill her, I will kill her, I will, I will, I will!' The road was uneven, and every so often the van would shake. Then the woman heard shouting from the front, and felt the van topple over.

The driver had seen a fox, or something similar ran across the road, and in trying to avoid it had driven off the road. The van rolled down the cliff-like road edge, and when it hit the bottom it burst into flames.

The fire burnt through the ropes binding the woman, and she managed to get out of flaming vehicle. She noticed the driver's body not far away. He had been thrown from the van half-way down, and had followed it to the bottom. The woman searched him, and found a gun hidden in his jacket. She smiled at this, and hid it in her own clothes, 'Now to make her pay.'

-----

"SHII!" Mion threw her arms around her sister. "Wow, wow, wow, congrats you two," she said jumping up and down.

"Mion, I'm the one who's pregnant here, not you," Shion said a little more calmly.

"So I'm being excited since you can't for the baby's sake, now come in," Mion stood away from the door to let her sister and Satoshi in.

"Still, aren't you overdoing it a little? We don't want the whole world to know now do we?" Shion said as they were led by her sister into a more private room, the same one that they had been in the time that Keiichi and Satoshi had had their cat-fight over the twins.

"Well the whole world won't know, only me and Keii-chan, and a few milion others."

Satoshi listened to the twins' incessant arguments. Everything seemed normal enough, unusually. He lent back on the sofa he was now sat on, and thought about everything that had happened since he had woken up. He smiled at some points, and frowned at others, but overall, he came out with a smile. That was, until he heard a loud 'bang.'

The twins were silent in an instant. Mion stood, "I'll go see what that was." She hurried out, and Shion turned to Satoshi.

"That wasn't... what I think it was, was it?" Shion asked in a small voice.

What Satoshi was wondering was why had somebody fired a gun near the house?

-----

Miyo Takano looked down the pistol at the man she had just shot. He was one of the Sonozaki's suboordinates. She did not care who exactly it was, just that he had been in her way.

She snuck round the side of the house, and looked through each window, until she caught a glimpse of green hair. She broke the window and climbed in, to find another one of the suboordinates, this a green-haired woman. A second shot sounded, and the woman fell down. Takano climbed out the way she had come, and continued around the house. Then she saw the face of the woman she was after, she saw Mion Sonozaki's face.

----

Satoshi was holding a very scared Shion in his arms, 'It's probably nothing, we must have mis-heard the noise, I'm sure everything'll be fine, Shion's just tense because she's very hormonal at the moment, and she's worried about the baby probably.' Then he felt Shion tense even more, and she screemed as the wndow behind Satoshi broke and Takano climbed in, then pointed her gun at them.

"I've found you Mion, now you get what you deserve for stopping me!" Takano's eyes glinted with madness, "You! Get out of the way NOW so I can deal with Mion!"

"I won't let you near Shion!" Satoshi ran at Takano.

What happened next, was something Shion never wanted to remember. The 'bang,' the shudder through Satoshi's body, him falling to the floor, and his blood covering the ground. Shion rushed to him, "Satoshi, Satoshi, SATOSHI!"

Shion could not believe what was happening, in seconds, her happy world had transformed into a nightmare. Satoshi's blood was covering the carpet, his clothes and her. She felt the warm blood on her skin. Tears formed, 'No, he can't...' Her tears flowed freely, "NO!" she cried out.

"He was a fool, now it's your turn, Mion." Takano lower her gun to point at Shion.

'BANG'

And Shion slumped to the floor.

-----

_Police report: JR-3 Case (summary)._

_Crime: 2 counts of Murder, 2 counts of attempted murder._

_Perpetrator: Miss Miyo Takano__(deceased) _

_Victims: Mr. Joseph Roberts (deceased), Miss Kayo Nomamura (deceased), Mr. Satoshi Hojo, Miss Shion Sonozaki_

_Details: Miss Takano entered the home of Miss Sonozaki's sister while the latter and her fiance Mr. Hojo were visiting. There, while outside the house, she found and shot Mr. Roberts, who died of blood loss shortly afterwards. She then broke into the house by breaking a window, where she encountered Miss Nomamura who she also shot. The first two killings are believed to be coincidental. After killing Miss Nomamura, Miss Takano left the house by the same window, and continued further round, breaking in again to a room where Mr. Hojo and Miss Sonozaki were. Mistaking Miss Sonozaki for her twin sister, against whom Miss Takano held a grudge, she attacked the pair, shooting Mr. Hojo in the chest and attempting to shoot Miss Sonozaki. She was, however, shot herself by one of the guards, Mr. Tatsuyoshi Kasai. Miss Takano died shortly afterwards. Miss Sonozaki was hit in the arm by a bullet, when Miss Takano's gun hit the floor and fired, but is otherwise back to full health. Mr. Hojo's injuries have been treated, and he has regained consciousness. Mr. Kasai was not charged for Miss Takano's death, on the grounds of defense._

_-----_

Shion sat in her hospital bed, her right arm wrapped in a sling. She was waiting for Irie to come back with results from her test. Her ordeal could have hurt the baby, so Shion wanted to know that it was okay. She looked over to the bed next to hers, where Satoshi lay. He was asleep at the moment. Although he had woken up since his treatment, he was still weak, and needed his rest.

She lay back against her pillows, she was tired too. In such a short time her world had flipped so many times. It was barely three months since Satoshi had woken up, and so much had happened in that time. She looked at the ring on her finger. So much had happened, that was true, and so much of that had been wonderful, it was a pity about the less wonderful things that had happened.

She heard the handle of their door twist, and Satoko walked in, with flowers in her hand. "Nee-Nee, it's good to see you. How're you feeling?"

"I'm good, and your brother was too last time he was awake. He's really tired though, so I'm glad you came, I was _so_ bored with nobody to talk to."

"Well I'm here now," Satoko said, putting the flowers in a vase that was provide by the clinic, "So what do you wanna do?"

The two girls chatted about various things, but Shion was still worried about the baby. She had not told Satoko yet, so she did not bring it up, in case something had gone wrong. Then, after a while, Irie came in, with a smile plastered on his face.

"Everything is fine now, you don't have to worry about it at all now," he said. Shion sighed with relief.

Satoko raised an eyebrow, "Worry about what?"

"We~ll," Shion began, "The thing is, in about eight months time, you are going to be an aunt."

Satoko at first looked stunned, then amazed, then "Wow, really, so Nii-Nii and you are..."

"Yes," said Satoshi, he had woken when Irie came in, and now sat up, "We're going to have a baby, and aparently Shion's little brush with a gun did nothing to harm it."

Nturally Satoko was as exstatic as the baby's other aunt had been, though eventually Irie took her out to let the couple get some sleep, though Satoshi didn't like leaving them alone together.

"Don't worry so much Satoshi," Shion said, lying down, "You'll just have to live with them being together."

"I know, but I don't have top like it do I?"

"No, you don't." With that, Shion closed her eyes and went to sleep.

-----

Bis Bald

BW


	10. The End Is Nigh

A/N: This is going to be the final chapter of this story, and will include an epilogue. For those who liked it, I will be writing a second multi-chapter Higurashi fic soon, though that might focus on a different pairing. Thanks to my reviewers, when I invent an award system, you'll all get one. Now, time to bring this to it's close:

It's Been So Long, Ch10: The End is Nigh

Shion trembled slightly as Mion fussed over her sister's dress. "Stop moving so much Shion, you'll ruin the dress."

"Easy for you to say, you aren't getting married in an hour," Shion replied, while trying to get the dress to go properly round her slight bump on her stomach. She was five months along and had started showing a little.

"Maybe so, but that's all the more reason for you to stay still, you don't want to get married while looking like somebody dragged you through a hedge backwards," Mion complained as her sister refused to stay still for more than two seconds.

"I wouldn't mind, as long as it was Satoshi who pulled me through the hedge." Shion smiled as she thought of Satoshi, and went off into a daydream. Mion took advantage of her sudden stillness to quickly sort the dress out.

"There, it's done, so now just don't muck it up until after the ceremony please," Mion pleaded.

"Uh... what?" Shion was still daydreaming about her soon-to-be husband, and had taken no notice of what Mion said.

"Never mind, now come on, it's time to go," Mion hurriedly, though not too hurriedly for the sake of the dress, pulled her sister out of the house and into the car that was waiting to take Shion off to be married.

-----

Satoshi waited nervously in the room that Keiichi had led him into when they arrived. He could be described to be sweating buckets, although that would be a gross understatement. He tried to calm himself down, but there were two pressing matters on his mind. The first was obvious: he was to be married in an hour. The second was that Mion had threatened him extensively that if anything went wrong, then she and the Sonozaki elders would hold him personally responsible. So if anything went wrong today, Satoshi was dead meat.

He steadied his breathing and looked across the room to where Keiichi sat smirking at him, "Something amusing?"

"Well you don't have to be so nervous you know, this is supposed to be a happy day."

"Yes, but if anything goes wrong then the Sonozakis will hunt me to the ends of the Earth, and then further," Satoshi was quite rightly terrified of them, though Keiichi still found it amusing.

"Well then you'd better hope that nothing goes wrong, hadn't you?"

Satoshi sighed, and wondered how Shion and Mion had talked him into letting Keiichi be the best man. As it happened, Shion had fluttered her eyelashes, and Mion had threatened to torture him if he refused. Satoshi had, somewhat grudgingly, given in and agreed, though why they were so desperate, he had no clue. Keiichi and Satoshi did not dislike each other, but there was a certain animosity between them, one that the twins they loved did nothing to reduce. Maybe that was what came from being with two sisters, maybe their personalities just conflicted, maybe there were just too many testosterone fueled arguments over the girls for them to get to be real friends. Whatever the reason, they just had their problems with each other, but now was not the time for that sort of argument, or for Satoshi to be any more stressed.

Satoshi looked at the clock, then stood, "Nearly time, we need to go."

"Okay, just correct that face of yours before we get out there. We don't want the ceremony ruined by the priest fainting from seeing that face of yours."

Satoshi smirked, "Well of course we don't want anything bad to happen, I mean, Mion would be horrified to hear that you spiked the priest's drink."

"Wh-what?" Keiichi looked genuinly scared. Satoshi simply laughed, and left the room.

-----

Shion was unable to sit still for the whole car journey, and now she was standing at the entrance to the church, about to enter, with her father with her, while the attendants to the wedding had already started heading to their places. She was trembling slightly, out of her pure nerves. It came to her time to enter, while the music played, but she did not hear it, she did not see the people around her, she did not feel the floor beneath her feet. All she was aware of was the alter, and the suited blond man who stood before it, looking back at her, and smiling. In what seemed like hours to Shion, but was really only a few moments, she was by his side, and the priest spoke as the music died away.

The ceremony continued, with Shion giving the right replies at the right times. She was still absorbed with Satoshi, and thoughts whirled round her head. Then a single sentance passed through her mind, the priest's words: "You may kiss the bride."

Shion felt Satoshi's lips on her own, and her thoughts calmed in an instant. She was Satoshi's wife, she would be with him forever now. This was the best day of her life ever. After all the hardships they had faced, they were together at last. It had been nearly seven years since they first met, and now they were married.

'Now Satoshi-kun and I can be together forever, along with our baby.' They broke off the kiss and looked into each other's eye.

In Satoshi's eyes, Shion read 'I love you.'

In Shion's, Satoshi read 'I love you too.'

-----

Epilogue: Eight Years later

-----

Satoru Hojo walked up to his family's house and knocked. His mother opened the door and smiled, "Afternoon Ru, how was school?"

The blonde boy entered and put his school bag down in the, "It was okay, but Chie-sensei set us loads of work, and Mikai needed loads of help."

Shion smirked, "He takes after his mother like that."

"Aunt Mion is really busy though, she's not lazy, and she doesn't always need help like Mikai."

Her son's words made Shion smile even more. Of course, Mion wouldn't show that side of her to Satoru. It was hardly surprising that the boy could not see the similarities between his Aunt and six year old cousin.

A noise came from upstairs, as a five year old girl with her mother's bright green hair crashed down the stairs, "YAY! Onii-chan's back!" She charged into her brother and hugged him.

"Suzu, calm down please!" Satoru colapsed as his sister hit him full on.

Their mother laughed as she watched the two. Then she walked over to them "Okay you two, Suzu get off your brother, he needs air I think." Suzu climbed off her Satoru, who emphasised his gasping for air. "Now Satoru go and get changed out of your school clothes. Your father will be back early today, so we can have an early dinner together."

"Okay Mum." Satoru went up to his room, followed by his sister. Shion smiled and set about preparing dinner. Soon after their marriage, she and Satoshi had moved into a house in Hinamizawa. Their son now went to the village school, along with his cousin, and Suzu would start there soon as well.

She heard the front door being unlocked, and then Satoshi entered the kitchen. Shion looked over to her husband, "Hi Satoshi, I'm almost done with dinner."

"Okay, then I'll set the table."

Shion kept an eye trailing after him while he went to the drawers to get what they needed to eat. Eight years of marriage, and he still had that effect on her occaisionally. She finished the dinner and took it over to the table.

"Shion..."

"Yes Satoshi?" Shion turned to her husband. He took her head in his hands and pressed his lips to hers.

When he broke off the kiss he smiled at her bemused face, "Something wrong?"

"That was a little sudden..."

"Do I need a reason to kiss my lovely wife?" Satoshi turned to leave the room, "I'll get the kids."

Shion touched her fingers to her lips. Her lips curved up. She was glad that she had fallen for him. She was glad she had waited for him for those six years, waited for him to come back, to wake up, to find her. She was glad that they had loved each other. She was glad of everything that had happened between them. She looked down at the wedding ring on her finger, the one thing she always wore. The thing she was most glad of... was the life she had with him. She looked over as Satoshi came in again, with Suzu holding onto his arm, while Satoru followed behind him, in a more dignified manner. This was the happy life she led now, with her family, and she would continue to lead it.

She and Satoshi deserved their happiness, and as for their former troubles, it's been so long since they encountered them.

-----

It's Been so Long: Fin.

Auf Wiedersehen

Der Blaue Wolf


End file.
